Ghost workers cause of high overhead, says Okonjo-Iweala


Thursday, 15 December 2011 00:00 From Muyiwa Adeyemi (Ado-Ekiti), Iyabo Lawal (Ibadan), Oghogho Obayuwana, Mathias Okwe, Collins Olayinka (Abuja) and Biodun Fagbemi (Ilorin) News - National


Labour tackles Jonathan over silence on fuel subsidy

PPPRA allays fear over price increase, NNPC cautions against panic buying

THE Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, yesterday attributed the country’s high overhead to the presence of ghost workers on the Federal Government’s payroll.

She, however, assured that this trend would soon be checked as the biometric initiative undertaken by the Federal Government had begun to yield fruits with the discovery that in the police pension scheme alone, N1 billion was paid to ghost pensioners yearly where as the actual amount required was just N500 million. The sum of N1.5 billion was actually being paid to the Police Pension Board by the Budget Office of the Federation.

These revelations were made yesterday in Abuja by the Finance Minister while shedding more light on the N4.75 trillion 2012 Budget presented on Tuesday by President Goodluck Jonathan to the National Assembly.

Accompanied to the briefing by the Minister of State for Finance, Dr. Lawal Ngama and Heads of the ministry’s agencies, including the Director-General of the Budget Office, Dr. Bright Okogu, Okonjo-Iweala declared that it was shocking that the Federal Government had survived it this far considering the level of graft on the public payroll.

Okogu also confirmed that the wage bill of the public service in less than four years more than increased from about N800 billion to almost N1.7 trillion, adding that of the current 72 per cent allocation in the 2012 Budget for recurrent, personnel cost of Ministries, Department and Agencies (MDAs) alone constituted 35 per cent excluding those of the Judiciary and the Legislature.

Accordingly, the minister said the biometric exercise would be pursued vigorously in the New Year with a view to plugging loopholes and to save funds for the government to deploy in critical areas of need.

In this light, Okonjo-Iweala hinted that the ongoing public service realignment would be completed and agencies with duplicating functions merged to save cost of operations.

She also announced that in line with government’s tight fiscal stance, the Federal Government’s domestic borrowings had been reduced from N852 billion this year to N794 billion while efforts would be intensified to ensure that more corporate taxes were generated and agencies audited to ensure total remittances of their collections to the appropriate government coffers.

Besides, the decision of President Goodluck Jonathan not to mention whether fuel subsidy will remain or not and the possible date Nigerians will start paying international prices for petroleum products has drawn criticism from the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC).

But the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) has assured that there will not be any price increase on petroleum products during the Christmas. The Executive Secretary of the agency, Reginald Stanley who gave this assurance yesterday in Abuja, explained that there was no need for apprehension as petroleum importers had been given all necessary assistance to bring in products.

The agency has also released new guidelines for its fourth quarter allocation.  Among the guidelines are that allocation to import permit is henceforth to be based on performance and capability; and only oil marketing companies with depots are to be issued permit to import fuel.

Also, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has cautioned Nigerians against panic-buying and hoarding of petroleum products.

The Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division of the Corporation, Dr. Levi Ajuonuma, blamed the emerging fuel queues noticeable in the Federal Capital Territory and some cities in the country on the unfortunate rush by some marketers and consumers to mop up enough products in anticipation of the envisaged take-off of the deregulation, which they believe will start with Tuesday’s budget presentation by President Jonathan.

A statement by the Acting General Secretary of Congress, Owei Lakemfa yesterday in Abuja who described the omission of the fuel subsidy removal from the budget as “a disaster waiting to happen,” noted that the budget proposal did not represent a potent instrument that could take the country’s economy out of the woods.

The statement read in part: “A critical perusal of the year 2012 budget proposal submitted to the National Assembly by President Goodluck Jonathan yesterday (Tuesday) showed clearly that the present government has no intention to lead the country out of the present socio- economic crisis.

“The budget, which was tagged: ‘Budget of fiscal consolidation, inclusive growth and job creation, is actually an anti-people’s budget designed purely in the service of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) and their local lackeys who dictate to the Nigerian government. It is a disaster waiting to happen.”

The NLC decried the exclusion of all the issues that relate to removal of fuel subsidy, saying: “In particular, the exclusion of fuel subsidy in the budget is not only tragic, but a declaration of war on the Nigerian people. Thus, the Nigerian people will have no choice but to confront this challenge.”

It contended that the President’s silence was a veiled attempt at further impoverishing the people as similar increases in electricity tariff, sacking of workers arising from merging of parastatals, attempt at returning of toll gates, the refusal to adequately fund education, and refusal to pay minimum wage, have demonstrated.

The huge allocation to security despite the challenges the country   currently faces from the Boko Haram insurgence seems not appealing to the NLC as it berated the Federal Government for devoting too much resources to security.

It added: “Despite the country’s security challenges, it is curious that the Jonathan government has allocated a massive lion share of the budget to security. In the first instance, the major cause of the increasing wave of insecurity in Nigeria is lack of education and mass unemployment, which are direct consequences of the general collapse of public infrastructure such as public electricity, roads, education, health etc. The security challenges are further compounded by lack of political will and abysmal ineptitude of security agencies.”

It cautioned that the mass poverty, unemployment and discontent that had increased bottled-up anger in the polity were like gun-powder that could be ignited by the planned removal of fuel subsidy even in the face of increased vote for security issues.

The NLC maintained that the budget was an instrument of punishment and that Nigerians had the right to resist.

The NLC said: “We call on all Nigerian workers and people to begin preparations for a general strike and mass protests. The people must be prepared in the next few weeks when the Jonathan administration begins to implement his anti-Nigerian policy. Nigerians should prepare to occupy the streets and public institutions to prevent them from being taken over by anti-patriotic forces.”

He revealed that the NLC leadership would be meeting on December 20, 2011 to firm up strategies and give directives on the start of protests that would mark removal of the fuel subsidy.

It added: “We call on the National Assembly to side with the electorate and the Nigerian people by refusing to pass this budget. We also ask the Jonathan administration to seriously have a rethink by reviewing his budget proposal, or be ready to take on the Nigerian people.”

Besides, the   Secretary General of the Yoruba Council of Elders (YCE), Chief Idowu Sofola (SAN), has lauded the decision of Jonathan to lead the negotiation with Labour over the proposed removal of the subsidy on petroleum products.

He, however, enjoined the government to extend the negotiation to other interest groups in the country.

Also, the first female Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Chief Folake Solanke, yesterday joined others to warn the Federal Government against the move saying it would further compound the woes of the already traumatised citizenry.

Solanke who spoke at the valedictory court session in honour of the late former Chief Judge of Oyo State, Justice Timothy Ayorinde, reminded the Federal Government of the devastating impact the oil subsidy removal would have on the meager monthly wage of N18,000 approved for public workers, which even some states are yet to implement.

But the Chief Medical Director (CMD) of University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital, Prof. Abdulwaheed Olatinwo, has lauded the allocation of N282.77 billion to the health sector in the next year’s budget as disclosed on Tuesday by President Jonathan.

In an interview with The Guardian yesterday in Ilorin, Olatinwo said the sum of money allotted to the health sector; a mere 5.95 per cent of the entire budget, if prudently used and dutifully monitored could serve as a veritable channel for creation of jobs for qualified Nigerians.

Earlier on Tuesday, the European Union (EU) Delegation in Nigeria urged caution on the issue of fuel subsidy removal.

At a media luncheon on Tuesday in Abuja, the head of the EU delegation in Nigeria David MacRae said that the controversy over the matter was brought about by the lack of trust by citizens who fear that there might not be enough transparency within the system in the judicious use of the money to be realised from the said removal.


http://www.ngrguardiannews.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=70872:ghost-workers-cause-of-high-overhead-says-okonjo-iweala-&catid=1:national&Itemid=559

Aunty Ngo, You should have stayed back in your world bank job. With all due respect ma methinks you are losing the plot ma. Pdp aint worth fighting for.

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As much as I believe in this woman and her foresight, the forces she wants to contend with are far greater than her boss, they will TARNISH her image if she isn't careful.

manny4life:

As much as I believe in this woman and her foresight, the forces she wants to contend with are far greater than her boss, they will TARNISH her image if she isn't careful.

^^^Exactly!!! Cabals to the left, and Cabals to the right. There seems to be rot and malfeasance in just about EVERY aspect of our national life. It makes you wonder how this country managed to survive all these decades and didn't go under. But it seems like for the first time in our life as a Nation these vested interests are being tackled. The annoying thing is that hardly is anybody (of substance) ever brought to book for these offences, but if we're lucky to catch a big-fish with his hands in the cookie jar, he's given 2yrs (3 at the most) no matter the amount of billions he stole and b/4 you know it, he's out and about, prancing around like nothing happened.

She, however, assured that this trend would soon be checked as the biometric initiative undertaken by the Federal Government had begun to yield fruits with the discovery that in the police pension scheme alone, N1 billion was paid to ghost pensioners yearly where as the actual amount required was just N500 million. The sum of N1.5 billion was actually being paid to the Police Pension Board by the Budget Office of the Federation.

This is the sort of thing that has made the haters go after she and Allison Madueke. Two women of steel, calmly sweeping away the scariest arses on the horizon.
Dr Iweala, we de your back, kamkpe!

these ghosts workers have ghostly account that cant be traced to these 'caspers' abi?

if they cant trace the ghost atleast they can arrest Account managers or HR managers